Other Food Allergies

Help? Fighting with alaska medicaid about mode of travel

I am currently appealing a denial my son received from Alaska Medicaid. My severely anaphlactic child (he reacts to smell)has had to travel to Seattle for medical care 5 times in the last two years and several times to Anchorage (which is 350 miles away) Our pediatrician has written letters stating that it is not safe for our son to fly on a five hour flight due to the severity of his allergy, and we have a letter from Alaska Air stating that they cannot guarantee that our son will not breath peanut particles on a flight. It is possible for us to fly on a Medivac flight (although this is iffy due to my sons severe latex allergy) for a cost of $20,000 per trip. What we were asking for (and were denied) is our actual driving costs which were around $2000. It just doesn't seem right to me that in a situation such as ours, the travel cannot be paid for. We have all of the documentation we need, and still we are denied. I have contacted my state representative, and am fighting the denial with the aid of a disability lawyer. I would appreciate any info anyone may have that may help me in this fight. I am also looking for any information that I can send to the state to help them understand the severity of this allergy. Thanks!!!

This is the first time I've been in this thread, I'm embarrased to admit. I'd just like to say,
Congratulations! Every victory the PA community gets like this is helpful. I'm glad you pushed it. I know that takes energy, and sometimes that energy can be hard to find. Thank you. Kristi